The Girls Who Ruled 2018

2018 has provided the world with challenges and injustices that have allowed these 18 young women – and many more – to show strength, resilience, ingenuity, entrepreneurship and talent. Some have overcome serious setbacks to reach new heights, while others have used their influence to help instigate serious positive change. Here, in no particular order, are our girls of 2018.

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Letitia Wright, 25

No other actor has proved to be as profitable as British actor Letitia Wright over the last 12 months. Her roles in Black Panther, Ready Player One and Avengers bestowed Letitia with the title of queen of the box office as she raked in the highest figure with $1.55 billion. "It has been a really big year - the blessings are overflowing and I really thank God for it," she told Vogue. "All of the seeds that I’ve been planting over the years of hard work - going to the auditions, getting on the train, messing up in auditions, booking them, every single thing has manifested this year and proved that when you work hard and dedicate yourself, everything else will work out the way it should."

Nadine Ijewere

Yara Shahidi, 18

With a recommendation letter from Michelle Obama, Black-ish actress Yara headed to Harvard this year. In addition to embracing student life, 2018 also saw her become a Chanel ambassador and put her name to her very own spin-off, Grown-ish. While these accolades and IRL status updates might be enough for some, for Yara, they are merely ways by which to ensure her voice and the causes close to her heart get visibility. As she told Vogue of coming of age: "I'm the beneficiary of growing up in a generation which is so involved, and I'm surrounded by activists using social media to make history... It's an oxymoronic time; so much is happening socially and politically, in a way that is terrifying but at the same time is producing this incredible level of unity."

scott trindle

Adut Akech, 18

Having scored two British Vogue covers this year, Adut secured her place at the forefront of fashion in 2018. The Sudanese-Australian model followed up her Saint Laurent debut with star turns on the catwalk for Givenchy and Alexander McQueen, and took the prized role of Karl Lagerfeld's bride at Chanel. Advertising appearances came in the form of the mighty Valentino, Versace and Moschino. Adut is proof of the old adage that nice girls finish first.

Karim Sadli

Fran Summers, 19

Yorkshire-born Fran has proved Britain’s freshest modelling face over the last 12 months. A stellar season in February - opening Chloé, closing Prada, among many other catwalk appearances - set the Vogue cover girl up for a year of highs that peaked with major advertising credentials, endless editorials and her red-carpet debut at the Fashion Awards in divine Valentino. The future's bright, the future is Fran.

Craig McDean

Marine Serre, 27

French fashion designer Marine is the new industry name to know. Having won the esteemed LVMH prize in 2017, the 27-year-old followed up with Paris Fashion Week collections that proved to be highlights amongst a sea of big-name brands and long-established designers. Hers is an aesthetic that marries sportswear with vintage-hued details, spun into endless contemporary iterations. Her clothes might be raising her profile, but that's never been her motivation. As she told Vogue: "I never dreamed of being a star, like the designers of the 1990s. Even when I began, I didn't start because it was a dream, it was always about the garment." And her garments really are great.

Julia Champeau

Dua Lipa, 23

How do you follow up a year like the 2017 Dua enjoyed? With ease, so it seems. In 2018, the British pop star has taken her stardom up a notch once more to become a global hit and is comfortably a generation-defining voice. Now a Vogue cover girl, the musician is hitting her mid-twenties and 2019 with a follow-up album that will only project her talent and whip-smart approach to the music industry and fame further across the globe.

Nadine Ijewere

Hannah Weiland, 28

Hannah's brand Shrimps has long been the faux-fur favourite of the fashion industry, however, it was in 2018 that the label broke out and really became more than a go-to coat brand. In the year she got married (in a dress of her own design) Hannah's bags, dresses, hair clips and fabulous fuzz all came together to form the ultimate Instagram brand that has an ability to both start and transcend trends. Here's to more in 2019.

mike trow

Malala Yousafzai, 21

Having embarked upon her second year at Oxford, Malala continued to campaign for girls’ education. With the release of her second book in 2018, We Are Displaced: True Stories of Refugee Lives, she offered a fresh view on the plight of a displaced person with her own touching story, as well as those of the people she has met over the last few years. Talking to Vogue in her 21st year, she touched on how her life now is a mixture of typical student existence and global campaigning: "Whether you're a feminist or an economist – or just a person who wants to live in a better world – you should want to see all girls in school. Listen to the stories of girls such as Andrea and Zaynab and share them with your friends and family. Speak out against injustice when you see it. Vote for leaders who believe in equality and commit to investing more in education."

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Ariana Grande, 25

2018 was Ariana’s year. Full stop. From setting the agenda on modern heartbreak anthems, to being a role model handling the highs and lows of public life with grace and forever staying true to herself, Ariana is the ultimate modern popstar. Her new album, Sweetener, was packed with career-best tracks, and then, just as the sun was setting on 2018, along came a little number called "Thank U, Next". It put her one step closer to total superstar domination.

Craig McDean

Sally Rooney, 27

Irish author Sally stormed the literature world with her debut novel Conversations with Friends in 2017. This year, she followed it up with Normal People, a novel that met with more critical acclaim in the UK than any other book. Her work tackles many modern concerns that young people in Ireland, where both novels are based, and beyond face today. Talking to Vogue about her second novel, the author explained: “It would be dishonest to say I set out wanting to write some kind of social realistic novel about class structures in Ireland – I didn’t at all. But, having decided that this was the novel I wanted to write, I had to think seriously about these issues. It was very important to me to get that right and to do justice to, on the one hand how all-consuming the class system is, and on the other hand how individuals are not reducible to one or the other identity group.”

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Emma González, 19

In February of this year, Emma survived the horrific Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Florida that killed 17 of her peers and teachers. Since then, she has become one of America's loudest voices on anti-gun reform, largely thanks to her role as co-founder of the gun control group Never Again MSD. In her now viral speech "We call BS", she said: "They say guns are just tools like knives and are as dangerous as cars. We call BS. They say no laws could have prevented the hundreds of senseless tragedies that have occurred. We call BS. That us kids don't know what we're talking about, that we're too young to understand how the government works. We call BS." Her focus might be on gun control in her home country, but Emma is an inspiring voice beyond firearm reform and is testament to the power young women possess.

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Kylie Jenner, 21

Adding motherhood to her CV in 2018, has Kylie's influence ever been so strong? With a 100 per cent stake in her eponymous brand Kylie Cosmetics, she's set to become the youngest self-made billionaire in the world - along hte way revolutionising the way we both shop and consume beauty.

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Nadine Ijewere, 26

The first woman of colour to photograph a Vogue cover, London-born Nadine reached a new career and industry high when she captured Dua Lipa for British Vogue's January issue. "When I was studying, there were virtually no female photographers of colour in this industry," she said, of the milestone moment. "I feel like, in doing this, I’m proving to younger girls from a similar background that it’s achievable. It also feels like part of a broader shift within our culture to include far more diversity, both behind the camera and in front of it."

Dina Asher-Smith, 23

Dina's power as an athlete is no secret, but in 2018 the 23-year-old used her place as Britain's fastest woman ever to exert a new influence over fashion. From walking the Off-White show to presenting a Fashion Award wearing a really fabulous Dilara Findikoglu dress, the London-born sprinter more than proved her sartorial agility. Add to that the fact that she won five gold medals this year, setting a new British record while winning the European Championships' 100m gold, as well as continuing her headlining role as a prominent Nike campaign athlete and it's been a busy year. For the January issue of Vogue, she penned a must-read essay on engendering self-esteem: "In today’s world, there’s pressure coming at you from every angle, and you have to figure out how to harness it, turn it to your advantage and win on your own terms."

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Jorja Smith, 21

There is no doubt about it: Jorja was Britain's breakout music star of 2018. Starting the year by winning a Brit award, she went on to release her debut album, Lost & Found. Suddenly, Jorja was everywhere: in the pages of Vogue, touring all over the world and filling our Instagram feeds with her equally alluring style choices. We're very ready for album two.

Scott Trindle

Lily Madigan, 20

Britain's political structure has been challenged in 2018, not least by those that demanded the alteration of the Gender Recognition Act, so that it might better represent the country's trans community. As we await the next steps, Lily - in her role as the first transgender person to hold the position of the Labour party's Women's Officer - is one such advocate making a difference on both a local and global scale. Her focus is on encouraging more young women and LGBT youth to apply, engage with and represent in the field of politics. Talking to Teen Vogue she said: “I just have a lot of faith in marginalised people", saying that they have power when they "understand our oppression and how that collides in an intersectional sense that less-marginalised people won't understand.”

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Jodie Comer, 25

Going into 2018 you definitely knew actress Jodie's face. Maybe it was in My Mad Fat Diary, Thirteen or perhaps Dr Foster that she commanded your attention? Now, she's Villanelle. Killing Eve proved to be one of the year's breakout television hits and Jodie was front and centre of both the plot and its success. In 2019, we'll see the Liverpool-born actress return as the ruthless assassin and a series of roles that will surely catapult her further towards silver screen stardom.

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Maya Jama, 24

Across TV and radio there have been few women as busy as Maya in 2018. While her Radio One show and television commitments have kept her busy doing what she does best, a collaboration with Pretty Little Thing and her very first beauty campaign for Maybelline extended the Bristol-born broadcaster’s influence beyond her usual remit.